Archive for the ‘TMNT’ Category

One month ago, Boston had a very comfortable cushion in the AL East standings, with the Yankees fighting for their lives with the Tigers and Mariners in the Wild Card race. However, after the Yankees-Sox series in Boston a week ago, the tables have begun to turn. As of Thursday, the Sox are only 1½ games ahead of the Yankees, who took two out of three from Boston at Fenway Park. The Yankees were gracious enough to have a home series against the Orioles following the series with Boston, while Boston had to travel to Toronto and got swept by the Blue Jays.

Sadly to say, the Yankees will inevitably make the playoffs (again), and appear to be in the process of winning the division as well (again). Sorry Sox fans (and the rest of America for that matter), but the Yanks will be a part of October baseball.

However, everyone loves a flashback from time to time, so this Boston slump has enlightened me to count down ten famous instances where someone on his/her high horse crashed and burned. Enjoy.

#10 New York GiantsThe G-Men started out 6-2 and had a firm stronghold on the NFC East during the 2006 season. Then, they switched gears—literally—and went 2-6 in their final 8 games. Lucky for them, they made the playoffs anyway with an 8-8 record, due to (as Stephen A. Smith would put it) the junior varsity level of the NFC. New York went on to lose on a game-ending field goal by Philly’s David Akers in the wild card round, and was sent home packing. Oh yeah, Tom Coughlin is hated by the fans, Plaxico complains more than T.O. now, and Tiki retires. Great camaraderie.

#9 Summer SandersShe won a gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics in swimming. Then she hosted NBA inside Stuff, Figure It Out, and Skating with Celebrities. You get where I’m going with this?

#8 Ryan LeafWhere to begin with this guy. He took his WSU team to the 1997 Rose Bowl and nearly beat Brian Griese’s Michigan squad. Drafted second overall by the Chargers, only behind some guy named Manning. Once he played, he constantly lost games while repeatedly turning the ball over, and even allegedly lied about an injury to his hand so that he could miss practice and play golf. He was subsequently released by San Diego, only to be picked up by the Bucs, Cowboys, and Seahawks, all of which cut him, too. Add the screaming profanity at the camera reporter incidence, and you have one tarnished legacy.

#7 Elizabeth BerkeleyJessie Spano was the most hated of the six cast members of Saved by the Bell, but she was endured by the viewers thanks to Zach’s crazy schemes, Screech’s undying love for Lisa, and Kelly’s recurring camel toe. Then things went from bad to worse for Elizabeth. Her character had an addiction to caffeine pills (I hate attention cravers), broke up with Slater for a fellow tree-hugging hippie, tried to drown her eventual stepmother and ruin the wedding, and left the show once the College Years began. Add Showgirls to the mix (which VH1 even hates to air), and you finally have the death of Berkeley/Spano.

#6 Teenage Mutant Ninja TurtlesTo this day, this show continues to battle Ghostbusters as the cartoon king. The show pitted the Fab 4 against Shredder and Krang, and even survived the continuous appearances of Vernon and Irma. Alas, all good things came to and end. Then in 2002, Fox brought back a newer version of the show, which can only be described as a travesty. I’m ashamed to admit that I tuned in that Saturday morning after a night of drunken debauchery in Blacksburg, and didn’t speak to anyone the rest of the day. Then there’s the TMNT movie. I’ve yet to see it, but word on the street is that Shredder does not appear in the film since he is “dead”. Hey, if Jason Voorhies can reappear ten times, so can good ole Tin Grin.

#5 Seattle SupersonicsThe Sonics were the team to beat in the Western Conference in 1994. They earned the top seed in the playoffs and got the Denver Nuggets in the first round. After going up 2-0 in the series, everyone thought that Shawn Kemp and Detlef Schrempf were heading to the NBA Finals. Not so fast my friend! Denver shockingly won three straight games and advanced to the second round. The series is famous for Dikembe Mutombo’s ridiculous half laugh – half cry scene while clutching the basketball to his head. Calm down dude, you still had to go through three more teams. What many don’t recall is that the Nuggets were down 3-0 to the Jazz in the second round before tying the series 3 all and forcing a game seven, only to come up one game short.

#4 Who’s the BossYou swayed and sang the show’s theme song with a smile on your face. Then the camera went to Tony Danza playing Mr. Mom. Then you changed the channel, and Danza kicked trash cans and field goals for Philly.

#3 O.J. SimpsonNot much to say here. The guy won a Heisman trophy at USC and was a Hall of Fame running back for the Bills. Then 1994 swung around, and the world was diverted from the Knicks-Rockets finals to watch the famous white Bronco mosey down the freeway. Everyone knows the rest: If the glove don’t fit, you must acquit. O.J. now appears to be taking thorough notes while watching Casino.

#2 Macaulay CulkinImpressive resume early on: Uncle Buck. Home Alone. Home Alone 2. My Girl. Richie Rich. We all wanted to be Kevin McAllister after watching him beat the hell out of Harry and Marv. Then we wanted our own McDonald’s and roller coaster. Now, we apparently want to have our 8-year-old faces pasted on our adult bodies. Culkin married at 18, and had a strong two year marriage. He’s been arrested for marijuana and non-prescribed Xanax possession, and he currently dates the voice of Meg Griffin. Believe it or not, he’s the godfather to two of Michael Jackson’s children. He must’ve made an offer Jacko couldn’t refuse.

#1 New York YankeesI’m going to try to be unbiased on this one. Yeah, not gonna happen—this was AWESOME!!! In 2004, the Yanks were up 3-0 on the rivaled Red Sox in the ALCS, and everyone outside of the Bronx had lost all hope. David Ortiz began the miracle comeback with a walk-off home run and game-winning single in consecutive nights. Boston then won game six in the Bronx and finished off the Yankees early in game seven, thanks to current Yankee Johnny Damon hitting a three-run blast. Boston became the first baseball franchise to win a series after facing a 3-0 deficit—and they did it against New York. The only thing better than teasing Yankees fans about getting swept is watching them get their hopes so high, only to then have their team get swept unofficially.

For anyone griping about this list, John Stamos came in at a solid #11…